TAG Trio
by Stone Jackal
Summary: A missing scene from season four's "Trio". Ronon/Keller based.


**Note: **_This one-shot came from watching _**Quarantine**_, and then looking for the continuation, or at least a mention of the sparkage between Keller and Ronon in _**Trio**_. But alas, no such luck, and this short was born. _

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"Hey."

He found her sitting in the mess hall, with McKay. But he didn't see McKay, didn't hear the scientist's babbling. Instead, he had eyes only for Jennifer.

Grasping her shoulders between his hands, he practically lifted her from her chair and pulled her into a crushing hug. Feeling her slim arms surround his waist, he dropped his face to bury his nose in her hair; inhaling deeply and squeezing his arms around her, "I heard what happened. Are you okay?"

She nuzzled her face against his shirt, relishing the feel of his arms around her, "I'm fine. A little banged up, but no worse for the wear."

"You sure?" Pulling back, his eyes searched her face; raking up and down her slight form; searching for visible injuries while his voice displayed gruff concern.

"Yeah, I'm okay," She smiled reassuringly, and his hands slipped down her arms, cradling her bandaged hands in his much larger palms, "Just a few cuts and scrapes. They'll heal pretty quickly. But of course," She teased with a smile, "You know all about that."

His response was a relieved grunt, and then, in front of all in attendance in the Atlantis mess hall, former Specialist, former Runner, Ronon Dex lowered his head and kissed resident Chief Medical Officer Jennifer Keller like he was a man dying of thirst, and she was the first water he'd seen in years.

"Um, whoa," McKay muttered as he sat, transfixed, as Ronon doubled his arms around Jennifer, lifting the petite woman so she could reach to put her arms around his neck. All the while, their lips remained fused, and McKay wondered how long they could go without breaking for oxygen.

"Yeah Ronon!" A voice McKay soon recognized as Lorne's called out jubilantly, "About time Big Guy!"

A murderous glare was sent over Jennifer's shoulder at the cheeky Major, but Evan simply grinned. Leaning down to the mess hall table on an elbow, he extended a palm, "All right boys, ante up."

There were begrudging mutters and groans around the table as bills of various denominations were slapped into Evan's palm.

"Uh, I-uh-when did _this _happen?" McKay demanded, standing and waving a bandaged hand between the still clenched Ronon and Jennifer, "I mean seriously, how long has this-this-whatever _this_ is been going on?" Staring openly at Ronon, he accused, "_You _never said a word, but not that's anything new. And you," McKay's focus shifted to Jennifer, "You asked me to have a drink. I thought you meant like on a-a-"

"A date?" Jennifer suggested, finishing it for him. She turned to face McKay, but made no move that would have her moving away from Ronon's comforting presence, "Rodney, we'd just had a hellish day, I-I asked you as a friend. The same way I'd ask Teyla to have a drink."

"Teyla's pregnant, she can't drink," Was McKay's feeble protest.

"If Teyla weren't pregnant then," Jennifer amended exasperatedly, then hiked a thumb behind her, "Or Lorne even."

Now, both Ronon and McKay were staring quizzically at her. In a low voice that was closing in on a growl, Ronon asked, "You asked Lorne out for a drink?"

Jennifer spun back around, crossing her arms and arching a brow as she stared at her _boyfriend_, "Yeah, Evan and I hang out. We're friends. You got a problem with that?"

Chuckling at her riled expression and tense posture; Ronon draped a well muscled arm around her shoulders and tugged her against him, "Nope," His face near her ear, he murmured so only she could hear, "So long as that's as far as it goes. I trust you."

While she was immediately pleased to hear that, she still rolled her eyes at his occasionally possessive nature. But Jennifer relaxed into the sheltered spot sandwiched between his arm and side, "Yeah, yeah."

Still ignoring McKay's presence in the room, and at the table, Ronon held Jennifer again by a hand on either of her shoulders, mumbled softly, "I just wanted," He stopped, shuffled a bit on the spot, "I _needed_ to see, for myself, that you were alright."

"I am," Jennifer had to stand on tip-toe, but she drew him into another kiss; slow and sweet; causing some of the braver (or stupid-er, as the case may be) Marines to whoop and holler. Ronon knew he'd be going a little harder on them, come next training session, to make up for it.

"Good," He nodded once, briskly, hands still grasping her shoulders, her palms flat to his chest, "You-uh-you have fun. I'll see you later."

"Actually, I was just about to call it a night anyway," A look passed between Ronon and Jennifer, making McKay well aware as to how _they'd_ be capping off the evening, "Good-night Rodney. I guess we'll see you tomorrow."

"Good-night Jennifer," He then added as if an afterthought, "Ronon."

Ronon nodded again, tossing McKay what could only be described as a smirk, then with a tender hand on the small of Jennifer's back, the Satedan guided her from the mess hall, offering a slightly too pleased, "Night, McKay."

McKay executed a hassled nod, waiting until Jennifer and Ronon had disappeared from the mess hall before he plopped back down into his chair with a disparaging sigh.

"So McKay," Lorne approached the scientist's table with a sort of a swagger; a bit of superiority in his voice when asking, "You really didn't know about the Doc and everyone's favorite Satedan, did you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Rodney disputed, trying to curl his bandaged hand around his mug handle.

"Well that's clear," Rolling his eyes; Evan licked his thumb and counted his winnings. But seeing the scientist's downtrodden expression, the Major clapped him on the shoulder and waved the stack of bills under his nose, "Ah don't worry McKay. Neither did most of the city."

McKay's response was a disgruntled grunt and a heavy gulp of his beer. Evan smiled knowingly, the covered it quickly, "Later Doc. I'm out to do some collectin'."

Even as he continued to protest, McKay remembered Sam's words from the cave-in; that he'd never had to choose between her and Jennifer, "We're friends. That's it."

"Uh huh," Then, with a wicked smirk, Evan was gone and McKay upended his mug to drain the contents.


End file.
